The Minnesota Senate today provided final approval to the Agriculture, Broadband and Rural Development policy and appropriations package, HF 2446, with strong bipartisan support. Senator Torrey Westrom (R-Alexandria), Republican lead of the Senate Agriculture, Broadband and Rural Development Committee, released the following statement:

“This legislation includes important investments and policy updates to support Minnesota’s agricultural economy and rural communities.

“When this legislation was first heard by the Senate, Republicans praised the long-overdue reforms to Minnesota’s cottage food laws that support small food entrepreneurs across the state. While I am pleased to see some progress on these reforms, I am disappointed that broader changes will be delayed until 2027. I fought to retain an important provision allowing cottage food products to be shipped across the state, rather than requiring in-person delivery.

“We also pushed for greater accountability in food assistance programs following concerns about high executive salaries at Second Harvest Heartland. The final agreement responds by ending direct appropriations to the organization and moving food assistance funding into a competitive grant process.

“I remain concerned about the fee increases for grain buyers and storers, but I am grateful we were able to secure a cap to mitigate their impact.”

Additional highlights of the agreement include the following provisions: